What to order: the classic tapas dishes, explained
Six dishes come up again and again when people search for tapas in Tel Aviv. Vicky Cristina is the one kitchen on this list cooking a genuinely Spanish menu, so it is the place to look for most of them; the Greek and Israeli small-plates restaurants below serve their own equivalents rather than the Spanish originals. Here is what each dish actually is.
Tortilla de patatas (Spanish potato omelette)
A thick omelette of potato and onion slow-cooked in olive oil, set firm enough to cut into wedges and served warm or at room temperature. It is the single most common tapa in Spain. Versions with chorizo folded through are a variation rather than the classic, and are usually listed separately on a menu.
Albóndigas (meatballs in sauce)
Small beef or pork meatballs braised in a tomato or almond sauce and served in a shallow dish with bread for the sauce. In Israel the pork version is rare; the meatball small plate turns up across the Greek and Israeli kitchens on this list too, usually in tomato.
Boquerones (marinated white anchovies)
Fresh anchovy fillets cured in vinegar rather than salt, so they stay white, mild and soft — nothing like the brown salt-packed anchovy on a pizza. They are served cold with olive oil, garlic and parsley, and are a cold tapa, not a hot one.
Berenjenas fritas (fried aubergine with honey)
Aubergine cut into batons or thin rounds, floured, fried crisp and finished with a drizzle of honey or cane syrup. It is an Andalusian dish, and the sweet-salt combination is the point. Fried aubergine is also a staple of the Israeli small-plates menus on this list, usually with tahini instead of honey.
Ensaladilla rusa (Spanish potato salad)
Cold diced potato, carrot and peas bound in mayonnaise, often with tuna or olives, piled into a dish and eaten with bread or crisps. Despite the name it is a Spanish bar staple, and a good one is a fair test of a tapas kitchen.
Gambas al ajillo (garlic prawns)
Prawns cooked fast in olive oil with sliced garlic and dried chilli, brought to the table still bubbling in a small earthenware dish. The oil is half the dish, so it comes with bread. Note that prawns are not kosher, so you will not find this at any of the kosher restaurants elsewhere on Top in Israel.
For the Greek equivalents — grilled octopus, saganaki, taramasalata — Ouzeria is the address, and for the Israeli version of the format start with Santa Katarina.